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I see these mandatory fees being pushed on customers. $300, $500, $700+ for documentation. Is there a legitimate reason these exist besides making money for the dealer? Have any of you had success negotiating these or completely eliminating them?
They say it’s non negotiable, so I always ask what the doc fee is right from the start, and then use that when negotiating the final price. It’s funny the look on the salesperson’s face when I ask “what’s your doc fee”. They don’t like to answer the question but there’s no way around it.
There is absolutely nothing mandatory about these fees. They are dealer padding, always have been, and I know from personal experience that many dealers will let a sale fall through rather than waive the fee.
And both the levels and the sheer chutzpa of dealers in demanding them has reached all-time highs. But people keep walking into dealerships, dropping their pants, and begging for it.
There is absolutely nothing mandatory about these fees. They are dealer padding, always have been, and I know from personal experience that many dealers will let a sale fall through rather than waive the fee.
And both the levels and the sheer chutzpa of dealers in demanding them has reached all-time highs. But people keep walking into dealerships, dropping their pants, and begging for it.
Um, more often than not, they are absolutely mandatory. A salesman is rarely (if ever) allowed to avoid collecting the documentation fee. It is mandatory that he/she does so.
Um, more often than not, they are absolutely mandatory. A salesman is rarely (if ever) allowed to avoid collecting the documentation fee. It is mandatory that he/she does so.
A dealership owner or manager saying it's mandatory does not make it mandatory in any meaningful sense.
Customers are told, often in flat-out lies, that it's some kind of governmentally-mandated charge, and only the most persistent find out it's just a business charge, which is for some inexplicable reason absolutely, totally "mandatory."
Once I was told it is the law. I asked to see the law, but the dealership could not produce any papers/laws.
The max I pay is $80 for them to do the dealership stuff. I recently bought a used car from a private owner and took me 20 minutes in the AAA office to register. So, if the dealer wants to charge me more, I say give me the papers, I will do the leg work. Then they back off.
A dealership owner or manager saying it's mandatory does not make it mandatory in any meaningful sense.
Customers are told, often in flat-out lies, that it's some kind of governmentally-mandated charge, and only the most persistent find out it's just a business charge, which is for some inexplicable reason absolutely, totally "mandatory."
It's flat-out grift.
But isn't it really the consumer who promoted this practice? If Car Dealer A is selling a car for $24.999 but also has a $400 doc fee, they are likely to be seen by consumers as having the low price if Dealer B is selling that same vehicle for $25,001 with no additional doc fee. Lets face it, many consumers are still suckers for the low cost with fee scam so why shouldn't the dealer rip off those idiots?
A dealership owner or manager saying it's mandatory does not make it mandatory in any meaningful sense.
Customers are told, often in flat-out lies, that it's some kind of governmentally-mandated charge, and only the most persistent find out it's just a business charge, which is for some inexplicable reason absolutely, totally "mandatory."
It's flat-out grift.
I'm not sure what you mean by "meaningful sense"... as when a dealership says it's mandatory to collect a documentation fee, it's legitimately mandatory for the sales staff to collect the documentation fee. It's not that complicated.
Neither the OP, or any definition requires something to be mandated by the government for it to be mandatory. This is just something that you're making up for some inexplicable reason.
As per my previous post, documentation fee is almost always mandatory.
A dealership owner or manager saying it's mandatory does not make it mandatory in any meaningful sense.
Customers are told, often in flat-out lies, that it's some kind of governmentally-mandated charge, and only the most persistent find out it's just a business charge, which is for some inexplicable reason absolutely, totally "mandatory."
It's flat-out grift.
I agree! Its only "mandatory" for the dealership lol
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